Shadowed History
by Blak Kat13
Summary: Before Robin, Batman had another partner. Nameless and as unknown as how he died. A complete rewrite of the usual history and plot. This is the events leading up to and after Jason Todd's death my way.


**I'm thinking about having this as a sort of backbone for my other stories I may or may not write and just felt like posting it. Tell me what you guys think. It kind if vague I know but it's a short over view of a history that I'm totally rewriting and you could go into it forever. **

**in this, Jason doesn't really have a name. He's from a time when most of Gotham was still convinced Batman was an urban legend and when he still topped the most wanted list. Publicity wasn't a big thing for them, they didn't want to be known and Batman already had a reputation, so a name was needed. **

**again tell me what you think, it it's good, if it's not. Thank you! (Ps. This isn't proof read, if you find something really confusing tell me and I'll fix it but other than that... Deal with it.)**

Jason stared over the railing, not sure what to do. Or what had really happen in the first place. The monster was about to get off with rape, even after one of his victims had killed herself, just because of his father's diplomatic immunity. He'd come over to scare the bastard into confessing, not even the corrupt police could ignore a flat out confession to a crime like that. But when he'd swooped in with a the menace he's learned from the Batman, the man had spoked. In a desperate -and possibly drug influenced- attempt to escape, he'd hurled over the railing of the twenty second story balcony.

Now he lay a broken heap on the concert below, blood pooling around his head. The boy didn't have to check to know he was dead, no one could survive a fall like that.

He wasn't sure how long he stood there, just staring at the corpse, not feeling particularly sorry he was dead. But he couldn't have been too long. He sensed Batman's arrival more than anything else.

"what happened?" The Dark Knight demanded, coming up behind him.

Jason looked at him, not quite sure how to explain -he wasn't even totally sure-, but he looked away again. What had happened was simple: he messed up again and the Bat was gonna be pissed.

but what came next would haunted them both, long after his death. "Did he fall..." Batman growled, taking his partner'a silence for something it wasn't. "Or was he pushed?"

Jason's gaze jerked up, a denial ready, but it died on his lips. He'd seen that look too many times, it was the one cops wore when there was a break in and the sought out the nearest street kid, cuffs in hand. Batman had already decided what he thought, it didn't matter what Jason said now. So instead he let his gaze drifted back down to the scum of an excuse for a human and decided that, no, he wasn't sorry. The bastard deserved death and so much more for what he'd done.

"he got what he deserved," Jason mumbled, not caring if Batman heard his or not. With one last glance at his mentor's grim expression, he vaulted over the rail himself letting the wind and adrenalin that came with falling wash away everything. But unlike Felipe, Jason pulled out a grappling hook long before the hit the concert.

when he met back up with Batman at the cave, they fought. Jason never tried to argue his innocence because he knew it was pointless and Bruce said that maybe bring him in was a mistake. It was never explained what he'd meant by that, wether he regretted bring Jason in as a partner or as a charge, because neither thought of his as Bruce's son.

in the end it was another thing that didn't matter, Bruce regretted something about him. That was bad enough, he didn't want to know for sure which part he was failing on. Or if it was maybe both.

a week later, Jason stumbled upon something during patrol. A woman really, asking if he knew a Jason Todd.

"what about him," Jason asked.

a hopeful glint lit up her eyes. "I'm his mother, his real one," she explained in a rush. Jason was speechless. "His bastard father took him from me and I couldn't find them. Then I heard in the papers that he'd been taken in by Mr. Wayne. I was so happy... " she's gone on and on, stressing how relieved she was to have found him and how they could be a family again and on and on.

"so do you know where I could find him?" Jason was going to say something sarcastic and along the lines of 'yeah, try Wayne manor, you know, where Wayne lives' but instead what came out was an unsure "yeah."

"really? Where? Can you take me to him?"

another perfect opportunity, only to be wasted. "Yeah," he said again, even less sure than before.

"then let's go! Please, I've waited years for this!"

Jason didn't move. "What did you say his gather's name was? Just to be sure."

"Willis Todd," she responded immediately. Jason felt something creeping up in him, something like dread or excitement. He couldn't tell.

"yeah that right," he mumbled more to himself than her.

she frowned at him. "I under stand the precautions, but how would you know that?"

he didn't answer, feeling slightly cornered. It must have show. On his face.

"you're him aren't you?" Jason was wanted to deny it, but it didn't seen that what he wanted to do made any difference tonight. His head nodded uncertainly.

the woman gave a squeal and launched herself at him and enveloped his in a bone crushing hug. Then she suddenly pulled back as if realizing something.

"if you're Jason," she said, eyeing his uniform and utility belt suspiciously. "Then that means Wayne is..." That forced his will back into his body.

"no," he interrupted, trying to sound causal. "I live with Wayne and then go out with Batman on patrol. That way if I ever get found out, nothing can be traced back to him, I guess." It was a good lie for coming up with it on the spot, it made sense and the woman seemed to believe it.

"so how is living in billionaire luxury?" She asked conversationally.

Jason thought back to his fight with Bruce. "It's okay, I guess. ...but I don't think Bruce likes me very much." He didn't for the life of him know why he was telling her this, maybe because he just needed to tell someone. Or made the situation was getting to his head.

"oh," she sounded almost disappointed. "Well you won't have to worry about that much longer. I promise."

he didn't really know how to respond to that. When his comm beeped, he'd never been so thankful to receive the order telling him it was time to goes back.

"I, uh, gotta go," he stammered out awkwardly. This entire thing dragged him completely of of his element and he didn't really like it. He was still suspicious of his 'mother' suddenly showing up when she hadn't given any indication to caring before. Willis has said shed walked out on them and left him with a worthless son, and his father never lies about that stuff because he knew that the truth would hurt a lot worse.

but still...

"that's alright," she assured him. "Now that I've found you, we can talk whenever."

with a slow nod, Jason turned and disappeared into the alley shadows.

the woman waited until she was sure he was gone before dropping the act and throwing her hands up in the air and down again like a child. Great, now what was she supposed to do? The only reason she'd come back to this godforsaken trash hole was so she could made wheedle some cash off the idiot billionaire that had taken in her son by using the kid as leverage. It was about damn time the little bastard had made himself useful. But now it turns out that Wayne didn't eve like they boy, so there was no way he'd pay to have him back. Her plan was ruined. All that money, gone. Ripped out of her reach.

the con woman was in the middle of her silent fit when something struck her. The kid was partner to the Batman...

maybe not all was lost after all.

she went to the joker first, knowing he'd be the one willing to lay them most. The madman didn't care about the money he stole, he just liked the trill of a crime, of killing people, and -most recently- baiting the Bat.

"so what do you say?" She implored, after explaining her plan to Joker. The clown was all mad smiles and insane giggles.

"you're willing to sell out your son! I like you already!"

"how much are you willing to pay for my information and services?"

he stopped laughing abruptly. "How much do you want?"

a slow, cold smile slid across her face.

it was ridiculous my easy to set up, teenagers with abandonment issues were so gullible. They had one of Joker's more expendable henchmen track down the boy, when the Bat was off somewhere else, and deliver the message.

the story was that he'd had enough of the Joker's mad schemes and wanted out. That he was willing to snitch on the las test plan in exchange for going free. Jason had demanded what was going down, deliberately avoiding anything that would imply a deal. The criminal told the teen vigilantes about the Joker had grabbed some woman who owes money to him from years back, about how he planned to kill her. Jason asked who the woman was, the criminal answered with "I donno. Shalwood? Caywood? Something like that." Jason had knocked him out, called it in to Gotham PD, and left him cuffed to a phone booth.

just like she'd assumed, Jason had known gone home after their first encounter and done all the research he could on his mother, Sheila Haywood. So he knew exactly who the clown prime had, and like any good boy, rushed off to waive his mother.

when he entered the warehouse, following the directions the snitch had given before his nap, he found Sheila tied to a chair. He'd noticed that there weren't any guards but hadn't given it much thought, he was just focused on saving the civilian. He'd cut her lose quickly and when the previously missing guards circled around them, Jason put her to his back and dropped down into a defensive crouch in front of her.

so he wasn't expecting the tell take pin-prick of a needle in the back of his arm. Or the way his body sagged to the ground a moment later. And especially not seeing the would be hostage leering down at him.

"sorry about that, kid. Looks like you choose the wrong person to trust this time."

when the Joker arrived, she watched with a detached boredom as he tied up her would be rescuer and waited for confirmation that the clown had held up his end. When she had that, she turned and walked away, not sparing her son second glance. She walked a good distance away, leaned against another warehouse and smoked a pack while checking her bank account, completely care free. The Joker got his fun, his grand punch line, and she got to haul in. Life was good. What the madman did to the boy wasn't her concern. The kid had finally made his life worth something to her.

she didn't even flinch when she read about Jason Todd's death in the paper soon after. She didn't care, and neither did the rest of the city, because the story ran its course it record time. They didn't care about the street rat who'd gone from zero to hero. No one had expected him to last, they were almost happy to see him go.

But there were a few exceptions. Batman was darker more furious, criminals who crossed him ended up I the hospital more often than not. Bruce Wayne toned down his playboy and partying persona. But the city remained unaffected and life went on.

and, a year and a half later, when a little acrobat boy was orphaned during a show with Bruce Wayne in the crowd, the billionaire took him in. And swore to himself that he'd do thing right this time.

when batman joined the Justice League, he didn't tell them about his first partner. And let everyone think that Robin was the first sidekick. They didn't need to know that one had died under him, they were already disapproving of Robin in the first place. And when more sidekicks had begun popping up, he still couldn't bring too.

unfortunately not even the Batman plans for people to come back from the dead to find that life had not only moves on flawlessly without him, but people were happier. And that he'd been seemingly forgotten, rewritten out of the history. Batman didn't plan for vengeful spirits coming back from the dead.


End file.
